Shot Through the Heart
by Caitlin51
Summary: A series of Olicity drabbles taking place after the season finale, lots of fluffiness! (Also, requests appreciated.) Oliver/Felicity.
1. Chapter 1

_Hello! This is my first attempt into the "Arrow" fandom, so let me know what you think! Also, I appreciate any ideas for future chapters =)._

* * *

"Felicity, I really don't understand what we are doing here." Staring down at the aggravating woman next to him, Oliver wondered yet again how he had been roped into this.

"It's not hard, Oliver. It's just the mall," she smiled up at him, and, for a second, he forgot his annoyance. But only for an instant.

Stopping, he crossed his arms. "I understand that, but why I am here?" He fought to be patient, but he just wanted to go home. Or punch something. They had already been into and out of three different stores - his arms were laden with bags.

She stopped and turned to him, putting her hands on her hips, the picture of outrage. "Really? you put my life in danger," her voice started rising with every word, "used me as bait," the volume continued to rise, "and nearly had me killed." She glared daggers at him.

"Woah, woah," he said, raising his laden arms in a defensive gesture, "Calm down, Felicity."

"Calm down?" she hissed, but she did lower her voice so that other shoppers stopped staring at them. "I think I have every right to be angry."

Oliver paused for a second, trying desperately to think of the right answer. Finally, he decided on apologizing - that had to be safe, right? "I'm sorry, Felicity. I should have asked before I put you into that position." And he did truly mean it - there had been no other option, but he still hated himself for putting her in danger.

She sniffed, but her posture relaxed. "You should be." Then, all of a sudden, she broke out into a grin that lit up her face and made her eyes shine with humour.

"What?" he asked, completely and utterly confused with her reaction to his apology. Even for a woman, that was a surprisingly fast mood swing…

She giggled, then replied, "I just thought I would show you what it's like to be played."

Staring at her blankly for a second, he processed her statement, and then finally grinned ruefully. "I guess that's accurate," he admitted reluctantly.

She arched an eyebrow and nodded slightly condescendingly, as if she couldn't believe that he was just finally understanding what he had put her through.

"So, this whole shopping trip is what? A punishment?"

She smiled teasingly up at him. "You could say that. Speaking of shopping, I saw this pink dress…"

He rolled his eyes as she dragged him further into the mall, but couldn't help but be pleased that she wasn't actually angry at him. He could handle anything that Slade threw at him, the death of his mother, the loss of his best friend, but he knew that he would crumble if Felicity ever abandoned him. He knew that she was his strength, and he promised himself that he would take better care of her in the future.

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_Please please please review!_


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: I hope everyone enjoys this chapter, and please leave a review with ideas of any future chapters that you would like to see!_

* * *

She wasn't always afraid of the dark. In fact, she usually liked it because it gave her a chance to think without any distractions. But this time was different.

"Felicity?" The voice was Oliver's and it should have been reassuring, to know that he was here to find her, to help her. But it wasn't.

Groaning quietly, she curled her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, feeling the cold from the ground seep into her body. She was going to die here, alone in the dark. And there was nothing anyone could do - not even Oliver.

* * *

"_Are you sure you want to do this?" he had asked her, concerned as always for her safety as they prepared to go after their target - an escaped mass murderer._

"_Since when have I refused the chance to help?" she had looked at him confidently, sure in her ability to survive. And no matter what Oliver asked of her, she knew that she would do it or die trying._

_He had put a hand on her shoulder and had stared at her intensely. "Felicity, this is going to be dangerous. I don't like the idea of having you as bait."_

_Brushing off his concern, though it had touched her, she had replied flippantly, "Well, it worked with the Dollmaker and with Slade, so…" She had smiled, sure that he would let her play her part._

"_You nearly died," he had pointed out, his voice rough. _

"_But I didn't." And with that reply, she had ended the discussion._

* * *

Another flash of pain brought Felicity back to the present. And the all-consuming darkness that surrounded her, smothering her will to live.

"Felicity!" Oliver roared, closer this time.

Despite her pain-fuddled thoughts, she knew that she should call out, that she should help him find her so that he wasn't stumbling around the darkened warehouse completely blind. But the best she could manage was another gasp of pain before she slipped back out of consciousness.

* * *

"_Drop the gun," Oliver had ordered, appearing just as their target leveled his gun at her heart. He was up in the rafters of the abandoned warehouse, his arrow at full-drawn and trained on the man standing in front of her._

"_A trap?" The man had screamed, nearly hysterically. She could tell that he was losing it, and that terrified her more than the gun. An insane man was unpredictable and he could hurt Oliver. Or herself, she supposed, but that was unlikely. She didn't present any danger to him._

"_I said, put it down. Unless you want an arrow through your heart." Oliver's voice was low and dangerous and made Felicity shiver._

"_I don't think so!" Before she realized what was happening, the man had grabbed her arm and yanked her around in front of him, holding the gun to her head. "Not unless you want to skewer blondie here."_

_Unable to say a word, she just stared up at Oliver, sure that he would be able to see the fear in her eyes._

* * *

"Felicity. Thank goodness."

The pain receded enough for her to hear Oliver's voice coming from right next to her and she groaned weakly.

"Are you okay?" Anxiously, his hands reached out to her in the darkness, clutching at her hand.

With what was left of her strength, she guided their entwined hands to her stomach so he could feel the sticky flow of blood gushing from the bullet-hole.

She heard him gasp, then say, "Relax, Felicity. I promise you that you will be fine." He was trying to be reassuring, but she knew him well enough to know when he was lying.

_Dying is fine_, she reflected as she felt his strong arms encircle her and lift her limp form, _but it sure is a shame that I never told Oliver how I feel._

* * *

_The gun had tilted away from her head, towards the ceiling. She had heard a shot ring out, then a cracking sound, and then the entire warehouse was plunged into darkness. Absolute darkness._

"_Sorry, blondie," she heard the murderer whisper next to her ear, then she felt a white-hot pain start in her stomach and start spreading. _

_He dropped her, and she hit the floor, hard. Immediately, she started crawling as best as she could despite the darkness, trying to make sure that she wouldn't be in Oliver's way. But eventually, the pain took her and she collapsed on the cement, the pain pulling her under._

* * *

She opened her eyes.

There was light.

"Welcome back," Oliver's warm voice greeted her.

She quickly realized that they were back in the lab. A hand to her stomach showed her that she had been bandaged up already and that the bullet had been removed already. "Did you get him?" she whispered.

"Yeah," Oliver replied, squeezing her hand gently. "Diggle caught him running from the warehouse while I searched for you."

She let out a relieved breath. "Good."

"Felicity," he started, his voice unsteady, "You nearly…"

"Don't say it," she groaned. "Not now."

"Fine," he agreed. "Later."

"Later," she agreed as she drifted off into sleep.

* * *

_Please please please review!_


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: The credit for this chapter goes to zozebo - thanks for the fun idea! I hope you liked how it turned out =)._

* * *

The steady pounding of her fists against the firm punching bag mixed in with her ragged breathing created an odd rhythm. She found that she really liked the sound, actually, now that Oliver had taught her to punch so that her blows landed with a fair amount of force.

Blowing a sweaty strand of hair out of her eyes, she danced around the punching bag, focusing so that she could master the light footwork that he had told her would work best - agility was apparently her strong point, or would be once she figured it out.

"What are you doing?"

Gasping in surprise, Felicity spun around, fists at the ready.

It was just Laurel. She sometimes forgot that Oliver's ex-girlfriend was now in on the secret as well and would now come down to the lab to see him.

"Laurel," she greeted her coolly, hiding her embarrassment at her startled initial reaction to the woman's presence. Wiping sweat from her brow, she paused her training practice to walk over to the table and grab a drink from her water bottle. Once hydrated, she asked, "What brings you down here? Oliver isn't around."

"Felicity," Laurel smiled at her warmly, "I thought that you and I could get to know each other a little better?"

Felicity smiled back only slightly sourly. Although she respected Laurel for her courage, she didn't have to particularly like the woman. She had never quite identified the reason for her apathy towards Laurel - it might have something to do with the fact that Oliver kept falling in love with her. Jealously was valid, she supposed, wiping her face with a towel. Finally, she sighed and replied, "Sure. Anything in particular in mind?"

Standing, she returned to the punching bag and settled into her stance.

"I was thinking that we could, you know, talk," she clarified, stepping around the bag to face Felicity again. "Since we both know his secret, I assume that we will spend a lot more time together."

"Great," Felicity gritted through her teeth, smacking the bag with slightly more force than necessary. It felt good.

Not giving up, Laurel asked, "So, do you do this often? Train?" she gestured to the punching bag. "It doesn't really fit the image of the IT girl."

Pausing, Felicity panted, "I guess I'm just full of surprises, then." With a small laugh, she added, "Also, I'm tired of being the helpless female that constantly needs rescuing." Giving Laurel a pointed look, she resumed her regime.

One of Laurel's perfectly sculpted eyebrows rose a fraction. "What does that mean?"

"Nothing," Felicity gasped in between blows. "Just that I don't want to be a liability to Oliver, is all."

"And you think I am." Laurel folded her arms over her chest and glared at Felicity.

Felicity just shrugged, unwilling to get into a full argument with her during her workout.

"Why don't you like me?" Laurel demanded, approaching the bag, though careful to stay far enough away to avoid a blow.

"Who said that I didn't like you?" she retorted, immediately on the defensive.

Suddenly, Laurel's expression changed and she smiled, widening her eyes. "It's Oliver, isn't it?"

Freezing, Felicity tried her best to school her features. "What?" The word came out weakly, and Felicity mentally cursed her lack of acting skills.

"It is," Laurel gasped, her eyes twinkling. "This is great."

Grunting, Felicity sped up her attack, ignoring the irritating woman. Even though Laurel was right, it didn't make her any happier.

"I won't tell him," Laurel said, her voice more serious now and her gaze intent on Felicity.

"Really?" Felicity finally met her eyes questionly, confused.

"Really," Laurel affirmed, smiling.

For the first time since they started talking, Felicity smiled, a genuine smile, at Laurel. Maybe they could be friends after all.

* * *

_Please review and leave more ideas!_


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: Hey everyone! The idea for this chapter comes from olicityfeels - thanks for the fabulous idea! Seriously...I love it so much and I hope you do too! As always, more ideas are always welcome._

_Also, I am now registered as a beta reader, so check out my profile =)._

* * *

Felicity walked back into their camp area, sweeping her flashlight beam in front of her feet so that she wouldn't trip over any roots or bumps on the ground as she returned to her tent.

Something moved near her head and she felt a rustle of wind rustle her hair. Stifling a scream, she swallowed and shined her light towards it just in time to catch a glimpse of a fleeing bat. She hated being outside alone in the woods at night.

"Let's go camping," she imitated Oliver mockingly, "It will be fun. Sure."

Calming her beating rapidly beating heart, she made her way back to her tent and had just grasped the zipper when she heard a low moan coming from the tent next to her. Oliver's tent.

"Oliver?" she whispered, not wanting to wake him, but needing to make sure that he was okay.

There was no answer, but she heard more low moaning, this time accompanied with frantic rustling.

Creeping over to his tent flap, she called again, "Oliver? Can I come in?"

Her only answer was another tortured gasp.

Felicity hesitated, but only for a second. She couldn't leave him without knowing if he was okay - she cared about him much too much for that.

Quietly, she opened his tent flap and slid in, shutting in behind her even as she took in the scene in front of her. Oliver was shirtless, which usually occupied all of Felicity's attention, but this time she was more concerned with his sightless eyes, clenched teeth, and the cold sweat that stood out on his skin.

"Oliver," she gasped, her heart constricting with the sight of him in so much pain. "It's just a dream. It's okay." She dropped to her knees next to him, but just out of reach of his occasionally flailing limbs.

He showed no response to her voice; his face continued to twist in pain.

She bit her lip, thinking through her choices. Leaving him was not an option - she couldn't just do nothing. Waking him up gently appeared to be impossible, but waking him up in a more sudden manner might trigger his reflexes and he could serious hurt her before he woke up completely. And she knew that Oliver could never live with that. The best that she could do would be to try to soothe him while he slept.

Scooting closer to him, she laid a gentle hand on his arm and started speaking to him quietly, trying to calm him.

For a second, it seemed to be working as Oliver quieted and stilled, his face relaxing out of its painful grimace. Then, before Felicity realized what was happening, his arm shot out and grabbed her around the waist, crushing her to his chest.

She didn't breathe.

She wasn't sure if she could.

Finally, she forced herself to take a shallow breath. Oliver's iron grasp had her partially curled up on top of him; her upper torso and head rested on his bare chest. She could feel every breath he took. Again, Felicity considered her options. She would never be able to get free of his grasp - he was incredibly strong. _And,_ a part of her admitted, _do you really want to escape? This is what you have wanted for a long time._

Making her choice, Felicity slowly wiggled her way down, freezing every time he shifted, then continuing once he had settled, until she was lying next to him, her head on his muscular shoulder and his arm securely around her waist, pinning her to him.

She forced herself to take a couple deep breaths. For some reason, when she was around him, she always had to consciously remind herself to breathe.

She closed her eyes and focused on trying to sleep, despite the sheer masculinity of the man next to her.

Finally, she drifted off to sleep, his scent penetrating even into her dreams.

And he slept soundly for the rest of the night.

* * *

Warmth on Felicity's face woke her the next morning - the sun was already up. Stretching out stiff limbs, she yawned, then sat up. A blanket fell from her shoulders - a blanket that hadn't been there last night when she had crawled in here with Oliver.

She smiled, holding the blanket close to herself with both arms, knowing that it was his way of thanking her for what she had done.

"Breakfast," she heard Oliver's voice call, and she exited the tent, happily ready to meet the day.

* * *

_So, there are two options for the next chapter: _

_1. I continue this chapter into a two-shot, the next part from Oliver's perspective and picking up where this one left off in order to address his feelings about Felicity and how she kept away the nightmares, or_

_2. The next chapter will be another unrelated drabble (what I will probably do unless people want me to continue this chapter a little more)._

_Please review and tell me what you want!_


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N: Due to the overwhelming demand for a continuing chapter, this chapter is Oliver's take on Chapter 4. Thank you all so so much for the amazing support and comments =D._

* * *

It was guilt by day and nightmares by night. There was never an escape from Slade, no matter what Oliver did.

...

_He knew that he was dreaming. It made no difference to him - the terror and guilt were just as painful as they were the day this scene actually happened._

_Oliver felt like he was underwater, drowning in his helplessness as he watched Slade. He couldn't tear his eyes away even though he knew the outcome._

_Felicity whimpered in fear, her eyes growing wide and Slade pulled out his gun and held it to her head. He saw her mouth his name, desperately, but he was unable to hear her plea. For some reason, it was worse that way._

_He knew it was useless, but he struggled to reach her, to save her._

_Slade pulled the trigger._

_Felicity fell._

_Roaring in anger, Oliver dropped to his knees, his hands over his eyes. However, the sight of her falling, lifeless body was burned into his sight._

_There was never any escape._

_Then, something changed. The feeling of terror receded and the scene shifted, becoming calmer, peaceful even._

_The dreams faded, leaving Oliver in a restful slumber._

_..._

Oliver's internal clock woke him that morning. Slowly, he opened his eyes, realizing that he had only had one nightmare that night. That was strange - ever since Slade had nearly destroyed the city, he hadn't had one restful night. _But last night was different,_ he mused, grateful for the break from his guilt about putting Felicity's life in danger.

Noticing that his muscles were sore from a night sleeping on the ground, Oliver started to stretch. Then he froze, feeling something...no, _someone..._next to him. But how could that be possible…?

Scarcely daring to breathe, Oliver tilted his head slightly to his left, careful not to move anything from the neck down and alert the person next to him.

Blonde hair fanned out over his shoulder from where Felicity's head rested, her eyes closed and her breathing even.

He almost laughed, but stopped himself - he couldn't bear to disrupt her when she looked so calm and beautiful. She sighed in her sleep, and her arm (which was draped over his bare chest) tightened, her fingers caressing him as she shifted.

Groaning quietly, Oliver shut his eyes and focused on breathing evenly until she stopped moving. It didn't take long for her to find a comfortable spot, but it still took Oliver a moment to be able to relax again.

Why was she here? That was the question that plagues Oliver. Not that he minded, really, but… His thought trailed off as realization hit him. The nightmares. That would be just like Felicity, to hear his nightmares and decide to see if he was okay. He smiled, pleased that she cared enough for him to check on him and secretly hoping that there was something more than just a friendly concern behind her actions.

If there was one thing that Oliver was absolutely positive about in that moment as he gazed at Felicity, a soft smile on his lips, it was that he felt much more than friendship for the beautiful, smart woman sleeping in his arms.

Then, spoiling the perfect moment, his stomach grumbled. Loudly.

Wrinkling his nose, Oliver resignedly decided that it was time for him to get up and let her sleep without interruption. Besides, the temptation to touch those lips and find out if they really were as soft as he'd always imagined was nearly overwhelming, and he knew that if he didn't leave now, he would kiss her. Still, before slipping out, he pressed his lips to her hair, breathing in her scent for a second.

Finally pulling himself away, Oliver took a moment to admire her innocent sleeping figure before standing in the tent. As his final touch before he left to go start breakfast, he draped his soft comforter over her then quietly left the tent.

...

Although no one, including Felicity, commented on Oliver's especially good mood that day, he saw Diggle and Roy exchanging more than one knowing look that he chose to ignore. And if he spent more time looking or smiling at Felicity than normal, well, that was none of their business.

He was much too busy planning out how to win her heart to notice such juvenile behaviour anyway.

* * *

_Please review and let me know if this chapter lived up to expectations! =)_


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N: Thank you for all the support and reviews - I love seeing all your thoughts! So this chapter is inspired by smiles (guest) - I hope you like how it turns out (I know it's a bit different than you requested) =)._

_Also, I have received a couple other ideas for future chapters and I promise that they are on the way._

* * *

This situation was completely absurd.

It had started like all the other times she had been used as bait (against Oliver's wishes) - she had been walking down a dark alley; their target had been chasing her just like they had planned; she was terrified. Everything had been going perfectly.

Then, there had been a flash of light. Blinding light, so bright that Felicity had been forced to close her eyes against the brilliant glow.

Then she had woken up here, in someone's kitchen, tied to a chair. It was a cheery kitchen, well-decorated, with family photos on the wall. Not at all what Felicity had expected for this kidnapping.

"I'd offer you breakfast," a male voice said lightly with a hint of hysteria, "but you're, well, a little tied up right now!" He laughed at his own attempt at a joke.

Rolling her eyes, Felicity wished that the man would just leave her alone. She was pretty sure that he was completely insane and possibly at the mental age of a ten year old. Since she had woken up about two minutes ago, he had had a full conversation with the wall, beat up an innocent trash can, and alternated between threatening her and treating her like a guest.

Staying silent, she strained against her ropes, trying to reach the watch on her left hand while her kidnapper puttered around the kitchen.

...

"_I'm really sick of you getting kidnapped." _

_Felicity had been working on her computer, but she had looked up when she had heard Oliver's familiar deep voice. She had laughed lightly. "Do you think I enjoy various maniacs capturing me?"_

_He had laughed too, but she had seen the serious light in his eyes. "I can't lose you, Felicity," he had said, his eyes intent on hers. Without breaking his gaze, he had pulled a delicate silver watch out of his pocket. "This has a tracking device. You activate it by flipping this switch on the side - it connects to my phone, so that I can always find you if you need me." He had showed her how to use the distress switch, then had taken her hand in his and had fastened the watch around her left wrist. _

_She hadn't known what to say. "Thank you," hadn't seemed to suffice, but she had said it anyway._

_Oliver's hand had remained on hers. "Promise me that you will always wear it?"_

"_Of course."_

...

Now, Felicity was glad that she had promised Oliver to wear the watch. She wasn't particularly scared of this man, but she would rather not be his captive any longer than strictly necessary. Besides, she was sure that Oliver was scouring the city, looking for her and hoping that she would activate the watch soon.

The man turned back to look at her, so she froze in her efforts. "Will the Arrow come for you?" he asked, suddenly sounding very afraid.

"Yes," she replied immediately, without any doubt.

The man suddenly looked like he was about to throw up. Sitting down on the floor, he curled his knees up to his chest and rocked back and forth. "No. No, he won't kill me. I can't die. But what if he's mad…?" The man kept babbling and rocking.

_Seriously? _Felicity thought, resuming her efforts to get to her watch. She was almost there. Just a little more time.

"He really likes to shoot people," she suddenly said, seizing the opportunity to feed his fear before he noticed what she was doing. "And break people's bones."

"Nononono," the man mumbled, his eyes widening. "No."

"You know," Felicity continued in a softer, conversational, just as her right thumb finally reached her left hand and flicked the switch, activating the tracker, "You could just leave now, and then the Arrow couldn't find you."

For a second, it looked like he was tempted. However, the moment passed and his face hardened. "No. I have to find the Arrow."

"Why?"

"I...I don't know," he replied haltingly. "I just have to. He's the Arrow." He said the last sentence like it was explanation enough for his reasoning.

Sighing again, Felicity just closed her eyes and waited, realizing that she couldn't reason with him - he didn't have the mental capacity to see reason. Anyways, she judged that it wouldn't be long now.

Her eyes had only been closed for about a minute before she heard the distinctive sound of breaking glass.

She opened her eyes to the welcome sight of Oliver and Diggle, both disguised and armed, both wearing matching determined and concerned expressions.

"He's over there," Felicity said, pointing with her chin and trying to keep from laughing at the sight of the two of them, armed to the teeth, ready to fight a virtual army, when the kidnapper was essentially a child. A crazy child, but a child.

Diggle went after the kidnapper, who was whimpering in the corner, but watching the Arrow with worshipful eyes.

"Are you okay?" Oliver's disguised voice distracted her from Diggle, and she looked at him as he cut her ropes. He was obviously seething with indignation at her kidnapping.

She couldn't help herself - she started laughing with relief, and at the sheer absurdity of the situation. "I'm fine," she managed in between giggles, "I just...it's just...so ridiculous…"

At first, Oliver and Diggle just stared at her like she was crazy. Then, finally, the corners of Oliver's mouth rose just slightly. "You need to go home," he smiled at her.

His concern about her sanity just made her laugh harder. Later, she would realize that laughter was her coping mechanism, but at that point, it just felt good.

"You're sure that you're okay?" he asked again, helping her up.  
"I'm sure," she replied, gaining control of herself, but not letting go of the hand he had used to help her up.

They walked out, hand-in-hand.

She would never admit it, but the one good thing about being constantly in danger was that Oliver would hold her, or be concerned about her, or look at her with his beautiful eyes… And Felicity took advantage of those opportunities every time.

* * *

_Please review - also, I will get back to the idea of Oliver trying to win her heart. If anyone has ideas along that vein, let me know!_


	7. Chapter 7

_A/N: Thank you to all my reviewers, favouriters, and followers out there - I always appreciate the support =). The idea for this chapter comes from Rane (Guest) - thanks for the suggestion! I had fun with it, so I hope you like the finished product =)._

_Also, if you are enjoying this fic, you should check out my new Olicity story, "The Island."_

* * *

"I'm sorry, Ollie." Those were the first words Laurel said to him as she opened the door to her apartment. "I know I shouldn't have called, but.."

"It's fine," Oliver interrupted, stepping into her apartment.

He had been surprised when Laurel had called him a couple hours ago. There had been something in her voice, something that he could identify with - loneliness. As he trailed behind Laurel on their way to the living room, he reflected on how his feelings have changed since returning from his isolation on the island.

Back then, he had thought that Laurel was his dream girl. An invitation to her apartment for a late dinner would have been his dream shortly after returning home. Now, however, there was nothing more than friendship on his mind towards the pretty brunette.

"I just ordered Chinese," Laurel said, gesturing to the unopened take-out containers on her coffee table.

"Thanks." Oliver sat down on the couch, ignoring the food for the moment. This situation was a little out of his comfort zone. He was aware that Laurel needed to talk, but he was much more suited to shooting arrows into people than he was to being sensitive. "Uh," he faltered, drawing a blank. "Is everything okay, Laurel?"

"Yeah," she replied a little too quickly, her tone light. "Just great."

Not knowing whether or not to push further, Oliver accepted her answer and reached towards the containers of Chinese. The one he picked was hot enough to sting his calloused hands a little, but he ignored it and opened the container to let some steam out. Laurel handed him a pair of chopsticks, which he accepted with a muttered 'thank you.'

Grabbing her own container, Laurel settled on the couch next to him, one of her long legs curled up under her body.

They ate mostly in silence, the sound of the chopsticks the only noise. It was unusual for him to feel so uncomfortable around his childhood friend, but Oliver just couldn't relax.

Laurel had changed. That was the conclusion he reached by the time he reached the bottom of his take-out container. Their relationship was no longer fun and easy-going. There was too much history now between them to ever regain that, and that realization left Oliver with a bitter taste in his mouth.

"I don't know why I called you here." Laurel's voice, low and subdued, broke into Oliver's thoughts.

"I'm glad you did." It was a lie, but Oliver figured that she needed to hear that. "I don't see you often anymore."

"I know." Even though they were talking, Oliver felt like Laurel had closed herself off to him and didn't really want to open up.

"Laurel," he started, but before he could continue, he heard the familiar sound of his ringtone break the tense air. "Can I?"

Laurel immediately nodded, her expression subtly relieved. "Yeah, of course."

Oliver stood up and walked a couple steps away, pulling his phone out of his pocket. The caller ID read 'Felicity.' His heart jumped to his throat and his mind started spinning, creating theory after theory. She could have been kidnapped (again). What if she was lying in a ditch somewhere with a broken leg? Or maybe she could be… _Stop it._ He told himself sharply. _Answer the phone._

"Hello?" He winced at how urgently it came out.

"Oliver?" Felicity's voice asked. "It's Felicity. I don't suppose you are free right now?"

"If you need me, I'm there," he replied without thinking. Then he looked over at Laurel. He could only see the back of her head from where he was, but a brief flash of guilt rose at the sight of her when he realized how easily he would ditch her to see Felicity. _I'll only go if it's important,_ he compromised with himself.

"That's great," Felicity said hopefully, "because I _really_ need you." He heard a sharp intake of breath on her end. "I mean, I need your help," she corrected herself. "Not you. But, you know, your help kind of requires that you are there, too."

Oliver couldn't help but smile. He could imagine her, her eyes closed and a look of horrified exasperation on her face as she realized what she had said. The mental picture was adorable - he loved it when she made that face. "What do you need, Felicity?"

"My car broke down," she confessed. "And it's late. Would you come get me and I'll call a tow truck in the morning."

"Where?"

She named her location - a lonely road just off the highway. Right away, Oliver's protective instincts kicked in - he had to go get her.

"On my way."

Breaking the news to Laurel was easier than he had imagined. She look just as relieved as he felt with the interruption to their one-on-one time.

"We can catch up later?" He was in the doorway, impatient to leave, but not wanting to be rude.

"Don't worry about it, Ollie. Go help your friend."

"Thanks, Laurel." Hugging her goodbye, he nearly ran to his car.

...

"Thank goodness," Oliver muttered as he finally saw Felicity's familiar figure illuminated in his headlights. She was standing on the side of the road next to her car, her arms crossed tightly across her body. He pulled over and paused, thanking his lucky stars that she was okay, that some creep hadn't stopped and attacked her.

"Oliver," Felicity's relieved voice met him as soon as he opened his door. "Thank you so much."

"Of course." Automatically, he enfolded her in his arms, holding her close. For a second, she seemed surprised, but then she relaxed into his embrace. "I'm just glad that you're safe," he mumbled into her hair. He held her there for a moment longer, then reluctantly released her. "I should probably get you home," he muttered, staring into her eyes.

"Yeah," she breathed.

The ride was short. Blessedly so, because having her in such close proximity, with her scent filling his car, distracted him like nothing else. It was also mostly silent, because Oliver was afraid that if he spoke and heard her voice, or laugh, he might lose concentration completely and send them right off the road.

Finally, they were at the door to her apartment.

"I'm sorry again for ruining your date with Laurel," Felicity said with a guilty smile.

Oliver frowned, wishing again that he hadn't mentioned that in their only real conversation in the car. "Don't be," he said, putting one hand on her shoulder. The gesture felt much more intimate than it should have. "I'm not. In fact," he smiled, "I'm grateful. I'd rather be with you anyway."

"Really?" There was a vulnerable, hopeful look in her eyes that just made him want to kiss her. But he didn't - he wanted to save that for a more romantic moment than this.

"Yeah."

"Do you want to come in?" She gestured towards the doorway with her key.

Shooting her an amused glance, he replied, "I'd love to."

"I'm in the mood for "A Knight's Tale," she chattered as they entered. "Any thoughts?"

"Sounds fun." Looking around, Oliver realized that this was the first time he had ever been in her apartment. It was neat and organized, just like he would have expected of her. The couch looked comfortable and there were a couple pick throw pillows scattered on the furniture and on the floor. The decorations were simple, but homey. There was a sense of down-to-earth comfort about her home that put Oliver right at ease.

"Oliver?" Her voice brought his attention back to her. She was regarding him expectantly, obviously waiting for an answer to a question that he hadn't heard.

"Sorry, what?"

"Ice-cream?"

"Oh, yes," he replied, belatedly noting the ice-cream scoop in her hand. "Thanks."

"I'll dish up if you put the movie on," she told him, gesturing with the scoop towards the small entertainment center in front of the couch.

"Deal."

Kneeling in front of her TV, he popped the movie in and then settled onto the couch to wait for Felicity. Unbidden, a thought rose up in his head that this would be what it would be like if they were a couple - casual movie nights, an easy atmosphere.

"Alright," Felicity handed him a cone and then plopped down next to him, close enough that their thighs were touching.

"Rocky road. My favourite." Oliver licked it, savouring the taste.

"I know," she commented. "I bought it for you."

Startled, he glanced at her. Her cheeks were bright red and she wouldn't meet his eyes.

"Not that I was expecting you to come here or anything," she hurriedly added, "But just in case?"

Oliver just shook his head and started laughing. "You're the best, Felicity," he managed through his laughter.

"Thanks?"

"I mean it." He brushed his fingers gently against hers, feeling the sparks that the contact created.

Her lips curved up in a smile as his hand caught hers fully.

The movie started playing, but Oliver was sure that neither of them paid any attention to anything other than the feel of her hand in his.

* * *

_Wow...that turned out much longer than I expected… Anyway, please review!_


	8. Chapter 8

_A/N: Hello all! This chapter is for Jommy26 - sorry it took so long, but I hope you enjoy the result =). _

_I think I have just two more requests to fill, so everyone else should start thinking of ideas they would like to see in future chapters. Basically, I'll keep writing this fic for as long as people keep reviewing and sending me ideas =)._

_Please enjoy!_

* * *

"Of course you have your own private jet. Why am I even surprised?"

Standing next to Felicity on the runway, Oliver chuckled at her dry enthusiasm. The small jet in front of them was all fueled up and ready for a short trip to talk to some executives about Queen Consolidated's future. Well, really about his future with Queen Consolidated, assuming that he could figure out a way to get his company back. That was the main purpose of the trip this weekend - to consult with people who knew what they were doing.

"Are you ready?" Oliver gestured to the plane.

"Yeah," Felicity yawned, covering her mouth with one hand. Oliver idly noticed that her nails were a turquoise colour today, one that he had never seen before. It matched her shirt, though.

That was something that had certainly changed, Oliver thought in surprise as he bent down and picked up his large suitcase in one hand and Felicity's oversized duffel bag in the other. He had never used to notice what women wore, especially not what colour their nails were painted. But with Felicity...

"Are you coming?"

Oliver looked up, distracted from his thoughts. A bit of warmth rose to his cheeks as he realized that he had just been standing there, staring at nothing, while Felicity had boarded the plane. Now she was giving him odd looks from the top of the stairs..

"Yeah. Right." For some inexplicable reason, he was flustered. It wasn't a feeling terribly familiar to Oliver Queen, and he didn't really like it. Unfortunately, Felicity often seemed to have that effect on him.

Getting his act together, Oliver shook his head and boarded the plane after Felicity. The interior was spacious - there were a couple armchairs, a faded plaid couch, a mini-fridge, and a small flat-screen TV with a DVD player on the little entertainment center.

"Wow," Felicity breathed, taking in their surroundings with wide eyes. Then she cleared her throat. "I think this place is looking a little shabby, Oliver," she commented with a cheeky grin.

"I'll work on it." He placed their bags behind the couch.

"You should." She followed him to the couch and sat down, leaning her head back against the headrest and sighing. "It's so hard to live in such squalor."

Oliver laughed. "I'm sorry this is so hard on you," he teased. "Movie?"

She didn't move from her position. "Something that will keep me awake," she yawned again.

He knelt in front of the entertainment center and opened the cabinet, peering in so that he could check out their options. "Okay, we have _Avengers_, _Thor_, _Captain America_, or _Iron Man_."

"I'm sensing a theme."

Oliver shrugged. "I like superheroes."

"I can tell," she replied dryly. "I vote _Avengers_."

"Because it combines all the attractive men?" he teased her with a wink that she didn't see.

A pillow hit him in the back of the head.

"Hey," he complained good-naturedly. "Ow."

"Oh yeah, the mighty Arrow's weakness - couch pillows," she replied, laughing.

Oliver popped in the movie and moved over to the couch to sit beside Felicity, the remote in his hand. He pressed 'play' and leaned back into the comfortable couch.

It was only five minutes into the movie when Oliver looked over at Felicity and saw that her eyes were closed and her breathing even. Asleep. Smiling, he quietly stood and walked over to the small wicker basket on the other end of the couch, opened the lid, and selected the top blanket. It was a cozy green afghan that he always kept on the plane because it was his favourite - Thea had made it for him when she had been in her crocheting phase.

Gently, he covered Felicity with the blanket. He was just about to go take a seat in one of the armchairs so that she could sleep in peace while he finished the movie when he heard her breathing speed up.

He paused and looked at her. Her face was no longer peaceful. In fact, her eyes were wide open and filled with fear. They flitted from side to side, not focusing on Oliver. Her breathing was now ragged and harsh and she let out an occasional moan.

"Felicity?" he asked quietly, not wanting to wake her but wanting her to calm down.

"Slade, oh, please no," she begged, her voice clear even though she was sleeping. A tear rolled down her cheek from her open eye.

Oliver felt like someone had hit his heart with a hammer. Or a truck. Guilt ate at him. She was dreaming about Slade, and it was all his fault. Why had he never stopped to consider the effect that that experience would have on her?

"Let me go, please, just let me go," Felicity murmured, her voice rising in pitch. He was surprised that she didn't wake herself with the sound.

"Shush, Felicity," he whispered, slowly sinking into the couch next to her. He brushed the hair off her forehead with a gentle hand and allowed it to run through his fingers. "It's okay. You're okay." He continued to stroke her hair, hoping that it would somehow penetrate to her dream-state and let her sleep soundly.

"Oliver," she said, almost in a normal voice. "Oliver, you have to go. Run." Her eyes closed and her face contorted in pain. "Please?" she whimpered.

The sight of her in pain nearly broke Oliver's heart. Seeing her like this explained a lot, though. Like why she was always tired, ever since the incident. He knew how nightmares worked, and if Slade had been plaguing her every night since then... Oliver pounded his thigh with his fist, trying to work out some of his frustration with Slade and with himself. They both were to blame for the damage done to Felicity.

"I'm not going anywhere, Felicity." He kept his voice gentle as he took her hand and started tracing little circles in her palm. He figured that that could possibly be soothing, but he was kind of at a loss. Should he wake her? Would she be upset if she knew he had heard her nightmares? This situation was beyond Oliver's training.

Then, suddenly, Felicity seemed to calm down and her breathing relaxed. Oliver didn't know if it was because of him or not, but he was just glad that she was okay now.

"Oliver?" Felicity mumbled again, this time smiling calmly. She was clearly still asleep. "I love you."

His fingers froze on her palm. He forced himself to take a couple deep breaths until he was able to resume his regular rhythm.

_Did she just say that she loved me? _he asked himself, confused but also hopeful.

He thought of the moment they had spent in his mansion right before Slade had taken her captive; the moment when he had confessed that he loved her only to pretend that it was all an act later. It had hurt him to do that, but he hadn't been ready to confess his true feelings to her yet.

A loud, low sound interrupted Oliver's tumultuous thoughts. He stared incredulously at Felicity. She snores?

The sound came again, confirming his first impression. She snores. He couldn't help a smile - this fact will provide great material to tease her with.

Figuring that she was probably okay now, Oliver stood up and gently disentangled his hand from hers.

The movie couldn't hold his attention anymore, so he turned it off and went to sit on one of the armchairs, his attention focused entirely on Felicity. What was he going to do? He knew that what she said in a dream wasn't necessarily the truth, but if there was even a possibility that she actually could feel the same way after what he put her through, he was going to take it. Now he just had to wait for her to wake up. And stop snoring.

...

Felicity woke up, immediately feeling an ache in her neck. She stretched, wincing as her stiff muscles protested the movement.

"Morning, sleepyhead," Oliver muttered. He was sitting on the armchair next to the couch, his expression attentive.

Felicity grimaced. "How long was I out for?"

"Only the length of the movie," he replied with a fond smile. "Sore?"

"A little," she admitted sheepishly. "Sorry for bailing on the movie."

"Not a problem." He stood up and walked around to the back of the couch. "We should be landing in a couple minutes."

She was about to reply when Oliver's hands, strong from years of archery, started kneading into her sore shoulders and neck muscles. She groaned in both pain and relief.

"Is this helping?"

"Oh yes," Felicity replied fervently. "Your hands feel so good on...aand I'm going to pretend that I didn't just start to say that." She was glad that Oliver was behind her and couldn't see her blush or her horrified expression.

He chuckled. "I'm glad."

"Mr. Queen, please prepare for arrival." The voice came over the loudspeaker alerting both passengers that their landing was imminent.

Felicity sighed regretfully as Oliver stopped the massage to come sit next to her. "Thank you," she said wholeheartedly. "I'm sorry that I fell asleep on you," she added. "Next to you, I mean," she blurted out before he could respond. "Not on, just next to. Of course I wouldn't be _on_ you, because that would insinuate..." She cut herself off before things got worse and banged her head back against the couch. She was hopeless.

"It's okay, Felicity," he laughed. He took her hand in his and looked into her eyes. Felicity felt her breathing start to speed up. "You sound cute when you snore, anyway," he laughed, ruining the serious moment.

She shot him a playfully outraged expression. "I do not snore," she declared. However, she didn't free her hand from his - it felt much too nice.

"Sure," he placated her. "And I suppose that you also don't talk in your sleep?"

"Of course not," she huffed. Then she paused. "Hypothetically, if I did talk in my sleep, what would I say?"

"Hypothetically, you would tell me that you loved me." Oliver's face looked very open and innocent as he said the words.

"Ohhh," Felicity drew out the word, not sure how to respond to that.

"And," Oliver added, eliminating the need for her to respond. "If I was to speak in my sleep hypothetically, of course, I think that I would say I loved you too."

Felicity took in a sharp breath. Was he saying what she hoped he was saying? "Oliver?"

"Felicity." He breathed her name so tenderly as he leaned towards her.

Their lips were inches from touching.

And then a jolt bounced them away from each other - the plane had landed.

_Really?_ Felicity thought sourly. _ It had to land when Oliver was inches from kissing me?_

Oliver looked just as displeased as she did. "Can I take you out to dinner?" he asked, standing up and offering her his hand. "Tonight?"

Felicity accepted his hand. "I'd like that." She didn't let go, even when they disembarked.

* * *

_Please review, and I hope you enjoyed it =)_


	9. Chapter 9

_A/N: I really love writing this fic and I love all the reviews! Keep it up, guys =)._

_One note for those requesting chapters: I am fulfilling the requests in the order they come in so it's taking a bit of time, but I promise that they all will happen!_

_This chapter is for Maverick41 (who is also the beta of my other Olicity fic, 'The Island.') I hope you like it =)._

* * *

"I'm in," Oliver whispered, hiding the movement of his mouth by pretending to drink. He didn't want to attract attention by being the crazy person talking to himself.

"Me too," Felicity replied.

"Great," Diggle spoke up. He was stationed in a van outside of the office building, making sure that their target didn't escape. Also, he was monitoring the security cameras that Felicity had hacked earlier. "Now Oliver, you need to find Ford and get his key card."

"Got it." Oliver left his drink on a waiter's tray as he walked around, scanning the room.

Their target was James Ford, a local millionaire. Felicity had come to Oliver about a week ago, upset. She had told him that some friends of hers, an elderly couple, had been scammed out of their life savings after they had invested in Ford's stock. More research on their and Felicity's part had uncovered other people with a similar story, so Oliver had promised that he would do what he could about it. He hated to see Felicity so upset.

Now, they needed hard proof, which they hoped to get from Ford's computer. His investment open house party was the perfect opportunity for their team to find the evidence they needed to get him arrested and the stolen money returned. The only problem was that Ford, according to Felicity, didn't just encrypt his computer files, he also set up his computer system so that his key card was required to so much as boot up his personal computer.

A man in his early 30s caught Oliver's attention - Ford. He was towards the back of the room chatting with a couple men, a champagne glass in his hand.

"Target acquired. Heading to engage him now. Are you ready, Felicity?"

"Ready."

Their plan was simple. Oliver would talk to Ford, swap the real key card for their photoshopped fake, and then hand it off to Felicity. While she used it to access the files and move them to a thumb drive, Oliver would make sure that Ford and other security didn't bother her. Simple.

"James Ford," Oliver pushed through the crowd and greeted the man with a handshake and a smile. He took note that the key card was hanging out of his pocket - perfect.

Ford's eyebrows raised in surprise. "Oliver Queen," he commented coolly. "Didn't expect you here."

"With the recent, uh, turn of events," Oliver improvised, "I thought that it would be a good idea to look at stock options for the rest of my fortune."

"Well," the man noticeably brightened at the mention of the Queen fortune. "That is excellent news indeed. We will have to meet up to talk."

"That sounds great," Oliver smiled, patting the man companionably on the shoulder. With his other hand, he effortlessly switched out key cards. He had practiced the same move about a hundred times with Felicity in the lair until it was essentially unnoticeable. "I'll be in touch."

"Got it," Oliver whispered to alert Felicity as he walked away.

"On my way for the switch."

"If it isn't Oliver Queen," a sultry voice said from behind him.

Oliver turned at the sound of his name. The woman behind him was beautiful. Like model beautiful. Long legs, full lips, beautiful green eyes. Her silver dress clung to her thin frame and didn't leave much to the imagination. He recognized her, vaguely. A fling with a model sometime before being stranded on the island came to mind. However, he didn't have time for this. "I'm sorry, I don't think that I know you," he lied politely, searching the crowd over his head for Felicity.

"Who is it?" Diggle immediately demanded in his ear.  
The woman eyed him up and down appreciatively. "That's certainly not true," she purred, walking closer. "Amelia. We dated."

"Get rid of her, Oliver," Felicity muttered. "We can't make the switch with a witness."

Oliver sighed. His ruse hadn't worked. "Right," he smiled. "Of course. How have you been?"

One of her perfectly shaped eyebrows rose a fraction of an inch in surprise. "Oh really?" she breathed, laying a hand on his arm. "We're going to pretend that there was nothing between us?"

"Who does she think she is?" demanded Felicity's outraged voice.

"Oliver," Dig's warning voice said. "We don't have time for this."

He patted her hand. "It was a long time ago, Amelia."

"Not that long that I don't remember what you like. Let's give it another go."

"I don't think so."

Don't you still find me attractive?" Amelia pouted, pretending to be hurt.

The worst possible situation was that she caused a scene and drew attention to Oliver, getting him kicked out. Best case scenario was that he could get rid of her. Unfortunately, there was only one answer that would guarantee no security guards.

"Beauty isn't the problem," he sighed.

"Then I don't see one." Taking his hand in hers, she started to drag him towards the dance floor. "Dance with me."

"Dance with me," Felicity mimicked in a high-pitched voice. Then, in her regular voice, she added, "I'm going in."

"Felicity," Diggle cautioned.

"Don't care," she cut him off.

Over Amelia's shoulder, Oliver caught sight of Felicity for the first time. Aside from the steam he could practically see coming from her ears, she took his breath away. Her hips swayed enticingly in her skintight blue dress and her long blonde hair fell in waves past her shoulders. Her eyes were narrowed, but still shockingly beautiful.

"Anything wrong?" Amelia murmured, her lips practically brushing his throat.

"We'll see," he replied under his breath. He had almost forgotten the woman in his arms at the sight of Felicity. Amelia may be beautiful, but she couldn't hold a candle to Felicity. Not for him.

"What was that?" she asked, swaying in his arms. He realized that he had stopped moving and quickly started shifting his weight in time with her.

"Nothing."

They danced for a couple seconds longer, right up until the song ended.

"Thank you for the dance," Oliver said formally.

She smiled at him, looping her arm through his. "That's just the beginning of our night."

"Oliver." The familiar voice interrupting their conversation made him nearly sigh with relief even though he could hear the edge to it.

"Felicity," he greeted her smiling. "I was looking for…"

Her lips on his cut off his sentence, just as soft and sweet as he had always dreamed they would be. Automatically, his free arm curled around her waist and pulled her closer to him. She pulled away with a throaty giggle that nearly made his blood boil.

"Not the place, dear," she admonished with another peck to his lips. He looked at her, confusion mingled with desire clouding his brain.

"Excuse me," Amelia demanded, her fingers tightening on Oliver's arm. "Who _are _you?"

"Oh," Felicity's eyes widened in affected surprise. "Sorry, I didn't notice you there." Her smile was condescending, making Amelia's eyes narrow in rage. And she ignored the question.

"Oliver, who is she?" Amelia demanded again, her voice petulant.

"Uh, this is Felicity, my…"

"Girlfriend," Felicity cut in. She held out a hand to shake. Amelia took it and gave it a half-hearted shake. "Well, soon to be fiancé, really, isn't that right Ollie?" Felicity pressed up against his side, one of her hands on his chest.

Oliver's mind was completely blank. "Yes," he finally managed to choke out. "Girlfriend."

"We met only a couple months ago," Felicity confided to Amelia. "And we're so in love already. In fact, Oliver often tells me about his previous girlfriends and how I'm so much better than them. They were a bunch of nut-jobs - I'm sure you know the type." This was accompanied by a conspiratorial wink.

"Oh," Amelia said, filling the word with venom.

"So, how do you know Oliver?" The question was innocent enough, but the glint in Felicity's eyes betrayed her true irritation.

Amelia hesitated. "We dated years ago, before I started modeling in Paris."

"Oh," Felicity shook her head. "My stupid mouth, always getting me into trouble. Sorry." There wasn't even a hint of apology in her tone.

"Whatever," Amelia scoffed. She spun on one stiletto and stormed away, practically radiating anger.

"And leave him alone," Felicity muttered, not moving away from him. Honestly, he didn't want her to move.

"Felicity…?"

"No time. Key card?"

"I'm coming with you."

"Don't be ridiculous," she said, twisting in his arms to look him in the eyes. Her voice faltered. "You have to keep an eye on security."

He didn't answer - he knew that she was right. Grabbing her hand, he led her off the center of the floor and to a corner. He needed a moment alone with her, mission or no mission

He placed his hands on her slim waist. "Did I go too far?" Felicity asked, leaning towards him. "Because I know I shouldn't have said that I was your girlfriend and I knew that you might be mad but we needed to get her to leave and I couldn't…"

"Felicity," he cut her off, "you're babbling."

"Then stop me." She stood on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck.

Her lips were only an inch away - an invitation that Oliver couldn't resist. "Gladly," he growled, pressing his lips to hers in a passionate kiss. Her hands tightened around his neck and his arms responded, pulling her closer without breaking the kiss.

"Ahem," Diggle coughed. "Sorry to interrupt, but there's a mission going on here."

They pulled apart only slightly guiltily, both of them flushed and breathless.

"To answer your question," Oliver whispered, "Jealous, assertive Felicity is undeniably irresistible."

She giggled and pulled away regretfully.

The rest of the mission went off without a hitch - Felicity had the money returned to the rightful owners by midnight, leaving Ford nearly bankrupt. However, if you asked Oliver, the biggest victory of the night was finally kissing Felicity.

* * *

_Okay, so I'm not sure about how this chapter turned out. What do you all think?_


	10. Chapter 10

_A/N: Alright, this chapter was prompted by __oliviaxoxo1230. It turned out pretty emotional (which was kind of the point) so I hope you all like it! _

* * *

**Present Day:**

It was all his fault. He wanted to lie to himself, to say that there was nothing he could have done. However, the guilt wouldn't leave because, deep down, he knew the truth. It was all his fault.

Felicity's lifeless body lay in front of him, her face ashen. There were small cuts all over her exposed skin as well as the characteristic bluey-grey colour of bruising. Again, his fault.

He already missed her warm, easy smile and the sparkle in her beautiful eyes. Now those eyes lay closed, the lashes dark against her pale skin.

He sighed and rested his face in his hands, blocking out the sight of her looking like this. This wasn't how he wanted to remember her, if worst came to worst.

Unwillingly, he cast his mind back to the events that had caused this tragedy.

**Three Days Earlier:**

"_I don't know what you don't understand, Oliver." Felicity put her hands on her hips and glared at him, her eyes sparking. "I'm not scared of being in danger. I trust you."_

_Oliver sighed in frustration. It felt like they had this conversation on every single mission involving Felicity going into the field. He tried to convince her that it was too dangerous; she blatantly refused to listen to reason. But he still had to try._

"_I'm not calling you a coward, Felicity," he said softly, stepping forward to put his hands on her shoulders. In heels, she was the perfect height for him. Briefly, the temptation to kiss her crossed his mind, but it didn't seem appropriate considering that they were arguing. "I just want you to be safe."_

_She looked him directly in the eyes. "I'll be fine. I always am."_

_He stopped arguing at that point, knowing that it was futile._

**Present Day:**

A nurse bustled in and into the hospital room, checking that all of Felicity's equipment was still active and disrupting Oliver's concentration.

"Am I still allowed to be here?" he asked, hoping that he wouldn't have to leave her side.

The nurse nodded. "Visiting hours are until 6," she said kindly. It was only 5 right now, so he had some time.

"How is she?" his voice was bleak, but he tried to still keep a little bit of hope alive.

The nurse hesitated. Not a good sign. "The longer that she stays in a coma, the less likely it is that she'll wake up. It hasn't been too long, yet, so there's a chance."

Oliver nodded, now unable to speak through the lump in his throat. The nurse just smiled gently at him and left, shutting the door behind her.

Once he was alone, Oliver scooted his chair closer to Felicity's bed and took her limp hand in his, careful not to disturb any of the tubes going into her body.

"Felicity," he murmured softly. "I am so, so sorry. I did this to you."

She didn't move. He didn't expect her to, but a part of him was hoping that the sound of his voice would have some magical effect to bring her back to consciousness. He had heard that people in comas could hear, still.

Smoothing some hair back from her forehead, Oliver took a couple deep breaths to calm himself down. Once he could speak again, he continued. "I'm begging you." He gazed intently at her. "Please wake up. You have to wake up, because I can't lose you." There had been too much loss already - the list of people who had died because of him kept growing. Shado, Tommy, his parents. Felicity couldn't join that list. This time, as the tears started, he didn't try to stop them. She deserved his sorrow.

"If you wake up, I promise that I'll never ask you to get me coffee again," he chuckled slightly through his tears. "And I'll even buy you a brand new coffee maker to not get me coffee from."

For a second, he thought that her fingers tightened slightly on his, but then the sensation faded and he shrugged it off as wishful thinking.

"And Felicity," his voice broke as the tears rolled down his cheeks, "I don't know if I'll ever have the chance to tell you, but I love you."

**Two Days Earlier:**

"_You move and she dies," the masked figure screamed. He was holding Felicity's arm in a death grip - Oliver could see the look of pain on her face. There were at the very edge of the bridge, only a flimsy guardrail preventing them from falling into the raging river. The sight made him see red. "No one catches the Goblin. No one!"_

_Oliver rolled his eyes at the man's choice of name. Villains just weren't very creative anymore. However, he refocused quickly. "Just let her go," he growled. _

_The lunatic didn't even seem to hear him. "I cause chaos wherever I go. And no one can stop me."_

"_Cut the monologue short." Oliver ordered, his distorter making his voice sound much more menacing. Felicity's eyes were wide with terror now. "The girl isn't a part of this; you don't need to hurt her."_

"_She's working with you."_

"_I don't know her." The denial felt wrong on his lips. He didn't like even pretending not to care about Felicity._

_The Goblin smiled, a smile that didn't hold any warmth. "Then you won't care if I do this." In one fast motion, he lifted Felicity up and pushed her off the bridge._

"_Felicity," he screamed, the sound tearing out of his throat._

_He heard her start to scream, but the sound was quickly cut off after he heard a dull thud._

"_Oh, how delightful," the Goblin remarked mildly. "She seems to have hit her head on her way down. Oh well." _

_Oliver ignored him and bolted to the edge, dropping his bow and quiver. They would only weigh him down anyway. As he dove over the edge, he heard the sound of retreating footsteps. The Goblin was getting away, and there was nothing he could do.  
The icy water hit his skin as he entered the water cleanly, the cold robbing him of his breath. The current was strong, and finding Felicity was going to be difficult. However, failure wasn't an option. He started to swim, desperately searching for a glimpse of blonde hair or fuchsia lips._

_A long time later, as he called 911 from the bank of the river, Oliver was more grateful than he had ever been in his life that he had somehow found her. He didn't know how it was possible to be that lucky, but he just prayed that it would continue. She had to be okay._

**One Day Later:**

"Another bouquet of flowers for a beautiful blonde and very alive IT expert." Oliver's voice floated into Felicity's hospital room behind a large bouquet of bright pink lilies.

She laughed weakly at the sight. "I'm not sure where you're gonna put them." Every surface in her small room was crowded with flowers, most from Oliver. She knew that he felt guilty for what had happened to her and that the flowers were one way of making it up to her.

"I'll find a place." The lilies ended up on the chair by her bed as that was the only place left.

"Thanks for coming," Felicity smiled at him.

"I'm just glad that you woke up. I thought I had lost you," he admitted with a tender smile that warmed her heart. He walked over to her and took her hand. It felt so small and delicate against his larger, well-muscled one.

"It takes more than that to get rid of me," she joked. "I'm tougher than you think."

"Sure you are." His voice was amused.

"By the way," Felicity changed the subject casually, not meeting his eyes, "When I was unconscious, was there anything you said to me? Anything important."

Oliver looked taken aback and a look of panic crossed his face. "No. Nothing. Nothing at all."

Felicity shrugged, feeling slightly disappointed. "Okay." It must have been a dream, then. A really nice dream, though, where Oliver had told her that he loved her.

Then she looked up. "Oh, did you catch the Goblin?"

Anger replaced panic, turning Oliver's eyes hard. "Not yet. But I _will_ find him."

Felicity squeezed his hand. "I know. I trust you." She didn't miss the shadow that crossed his eyes at her words. It worried her - she didn't want him carrying the guilt with him.

Oliver let go of her hand and started towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Felicity frowned. "You just got here."

Oliver turned back to her with a forced smile. "The Goblin won't find himself."

* * *

_Okay, so I'm thinking of doing another chapter with the aftereffects of this one (incorporating a prompt into it as well). Thoughts?_

_Also, should I bring the Goblin back in future chapters?_

_Please review and let me know what you all think!_


	11. Chapter 11

_A/N: Okay, I have been very excited to write this chapter ever since _jaitoddja13 _requested it. It references the events of last chapter, just fyi. I hope you all enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! One note: I had to research this a little because I know absolutely nothing about it...so if I'm terribly wrong, please tell me!_

_Enjoy =)._

* * *

"Any luck?"

Oliver started at the sound of the voice behind him, all his muscles tensing up reflexively, preparing himself in case there was a threat. However, a fraction of a second later, his brain identified the voice as Felicity's and he relaxed. "No." He got up and faced her, putting his hand on her shoulder in what he hoped was a comforting manner. "Not yet," he amended his statement with a smile that was more for her benefit than it was genuine. "But we'll find him."

"I know." She smiled at him and he could see the trust in her eyes. Trust that he would find the Goblin before he could hurt her again.

It had been a couple weeks since the incident, and everything had mostly returned to normal. Mostly. If Felicity had been a little more reserved and Oliver a little more intense since the incident, neither of them commented on it. And with Lyla's pregnancy, Diggle wasn't around often enough to notice any of the changes in his two friends.

"Oliver?" Felicity asked, then hesitated, her eyes dropping to the floor. "Can I ask you something?"

Oliver hated the sight of her looking nervous around him and rushed to reply. "Of course. Anything." He said the words gently, but imbued them with meaning. He would do anything for Felicity without a second's thought. Anything to make her smile, to wipe the doubt off her face.

She wrung her hands a little and smiled unsurely at him. "Diggle isn't around much anymore and he was training me sometimes but we never really got very far and with the Goblin around and everything I just thought that I should know how to defend myself and not keep being the damsel in distress who needs a knight in shining armor," she babbled. Then her eyes widened. "Not that you're my knight or anything, and," she wrinkled her nose cutely. "I'm going to stop talking."

Realizing that he had a goofy smile on his face, Oliver cleared his throat and adopted a more serious expression to consider her request. He had a hard time keeping a straight face when she started babbling because it was just so...so _her_. And he loved it about her.

"Ahh, you want me to train you?"

She nodded emphatically. "Yes. To fight bad guys."

Oliver smiled, making his decision. "Sure, why not?"

...

The next morning, it took Oliver all of five seconds to decide that he had made a huge error by agreeing to train Felicity.

She walked into the lair at 6:30 am sharp and his jaw nearly fell open at the sight. She wore black spandex shorts that just barely reached mid-thigh, leaving long, bare legs tantalizing him with every step. A bright pink tank-top hugged all of her curves. As she walked towards him, he noticed that the bottom of the material tended to curl up, leaving a strip of bare flesh that was just begging for his touch. She pulled it down absentmindedly, but the image was still there, in Oliver's mind. Her hair was up in its usual jaunty ponytail, the only difference the black sweatband that prevented any blonde tendrils from escaping.

"Okay, I'm ready." She dropped her bag on the desk and rifled through it locating her water bottle and towel and removing them for easy access. "Oliver?"

"Huh?" Mentally, Oliver slapped himself for staring and not paying attention to what she was saying.

"Are you ready to train me?"

"Of course." He gestured for her to walk onto the mat, then followed her.

Felicity bounced in place experimentally, feeling the surface of the mat. Normally, he would have approved of becoming familiar with surroundings, but that particular movement was incredibly distracting.

"So, what has Diggle taught you?"

She shrugged. "Not much. We never hit a regular schedule."

"So, from the beginning then. I'm going to show you a couple easy, but effective moves to slow down or incapacitate your assailant."

"Sounds good." He didn't miss the slight hesitation in her voice, signaling to him that she was nervous about their activity.

Oliver smiled reassuringly at her. "You'll be fine. The first one deals with disarming someone with a gun. If someone's pointing a one at you, it's good to know how to take it from him."

He stood inches in front of her, marveling at the fact that, without her characteristic heels, she really wasn't that tall. In fact, she only went up to his chest. And she looked so delicate and beautiful, looking earnestly up at him, her expression focused.

He cleared his throat and pulled a gun out of his pocket. "No bullets," he smiled, showing her the empty chamber.

She smiled tightly too. "So, what do I do?"  
Oliver took a step back and pointed the gun at her. Even though he knew that it wasn't loaded, it still gave him a moment of panic seeing it pointed at her, especially in his own hand. "Grab my wrist with your right hand and step towards me while turning…no, the other way," he guided her with his free hand so that she twisted herself under his arm and ended up tucked against his chest, still gripping his wrist. "Perfect," he breathed, struggling to keep his mind on the lesson and not on how Felicity's curves were pressed up against him and the scent of her floral shampoo was invading his senses. "Now, with your other hand, twist my thumb like this and pull on the barrel of the gun." He took her left hand in his, trying not to notice how perfectly it fit inside his and how soft her skin was. "And then you have the gun."

"What do I do next?" she asked. Was it just his imagination, or was her voice breathier than usual as well?

"Run. As fast as you can. Now let's do it again."

…

Two practice sessions later showed vast improvement in Felicity's abilities. However, Oliver couldn't say the same about his self-control. That actually seemed to be deteriorating the more time he spent with her.

Across the mat, Felicity was panting for breath, but her eyes were wary as she watched his movements. A couple strands of hair had escaped her sweatband (green, today) and curled around her face invitingly.

Oliver went on the offensive. He lunged forward, reaching for her waist to throw her, but she side-stepped quickly and grabbed his arm from behind while he was off-balance, obviously intending to try and flip him. He almost laughed, but stopped himself before he insulted her. Just the thought of little Felicity trying to throw him was ludicrous. Instead of laughing, he spun and caught her around the waist with his free hand, pulling her towards him until she was pressed up against his chest. He could feel her hot, gasping breaths against his bare skin, the sensation sending tingles through his body. The moment of distraction cost him, however, as she snaked her foot out and behind his, then pushed him backwards. Surprised, he stumbled backwards, tripping over her foot to land hard on his back on the mat. There was a upside to his fall, though - he hadn't let go of Felicity, who was now lying on top of him. She tried to wiggle out of his grasp, but his arm tightened around her. The way she moved against him arose so many desires, he just couldn't help himself.

"Are you...are you...okay?" she gasped out, raising herself just enough to peek up at his face.

In a movement so fast that she had no time to react, Oliver flipped them over so that Felicity was lying on the mat and his body was balanced on his forearms, hovering merely inches from her. "No," he replied, his voice pitched low with desire. "I'm not."

Felicity saw the look in her eyes, and she didn't hesitate to respond. Her eyes darkened and she tilted her head so that her lips were positioned invitingly. An invitation that he couldn't resist.

He lowered himself slightly, brushing his lips against hers in a light caress, as if asking for permission. She responded, bringing her arms up around his neck to pull him closer. He deepened the kiss in an explosion of sensation, feeling more than hearing her moan with pleasure.

Finally, he pulled back and rolled off of her with a groan of regret. "This is a bad idea," he said after they had both caught their breath. He wanted to be with her so badly, but with the life it lived, it was just...too dangerous. But if she wanted it, knowing the dangers, who was he to stop her?

"I like bad ideas," Felicity breathed, feeling across the mat until she found his hand and entwining her fingers in his. "I _really_ like bad ideas."  
Despite his reservations, he smiled and squeezed her hand. "Me too."

* * *

_Please review!_


	12. Chapter 12

_A/N: Okay, I hope you all love this chapter because I had a lot of fun writing it! Thank you __**Spitfire303 **__for the awesome idea =)._

_There is one assumption in here that I should mention: I have Oliver as CEO of Queen Consolidated again because I think that he will get his company back soon._

_Enjoy!_

* * *

"Why can't you just listen to me?" Oliver's frustrated voice floated up the stairs to where Diggle had just entered the lair.

He heard Felicity huff as he started down the stairs. "You're not in charge of me, Oliver." There was a distinct edge to her voice that Diggle was much too familiar with.

The two of them came into his sight. Felicity was standing with her hands on her hips, glaring up at Oliver. Only inches from her, Oliver's mouth was set in a frown and his arms were crossed. "This isn't a discussion, Felicity," he told her, his voice steely.

"You're right. It isn't. It's my choice." She narrowed her eyes at him as if daring him to contradict her statement.

Pausing, Diggle debated whether or not he wanted to get into the middle of this argument. Again. It was true that he hadn't been involved in Team Arrow business much lately due to Lyla's pregnancy, but another contributing factor to his absences was the tension surrounding Oliver and Felicity. Every time he arrived, they were either fighting or giving each other the silent treatment, and, no matter how often he tried to talk to them, he couldn't figure out the root of their issue.

"Still having problems?" he asked, alerting both of them to his presence.

Felicity whirled to face him, her eyes lighting up. "Digg, tell Oliver that…"

"Woah, woah," Digg held his hands up in a placating gesture. "Not getting involved."

"But Felicity is being…" Oliver started to protest, but stopped as Diggle glared at him.

"No. I've had enough from you two."

Oliver's frown deepened and Felicity pursed her lips, but neither said anything. Both of them knew that they were being ridiculous, but neither would admit it. Apparently, their brilliance and bravery didn't translate into admitting that they were in the wrong and apologizing.

"Close your eyes," Diggle ordered, his tone militant and demanding obedience. "Now."

Felicity's eyes snapped closed even as she asked, "Why?"

Echoing her question, Oliver obeyed as well.

Unable to suppress a bit of a grin, Diggle reached into his pocket and pulled out a pair of handcuffs, careful not to let the metal clink together. "It's a surprise. Hold out your hands."

Immediately, both their expressions lightened and they obeyed much less reluctantly. Diggle carefully judged the distance between them and formulated his plan. Felicity first.

"No peeking," he cautioned, moving towards Felicity. "Lyla made this for you, but don't look until I tell you."

He waited for her answering nod before he snapped the cuff on her left wrist. As expected, she didn't even flinch at the feeling. Diggle had suspected that she wouldn't know what handcuffs felt like.

"Can I look yet?" she asked excitedly.

"Are we almost done?" Oliver demanded at the same time in an aggravated tone.

"Almost. Take one step over this way, and there." Diggle snapped the other half of the cuff down on Oliver's right wrist and quickly stepped back.

Oliver's eyes flew open and took in the scene in one horrified glance. "What. Have. You. Done?"

A wide-eyed stare was Felicity's shocked response.

Diggle smiled and held up the key, then very deliberately put in into his pocket. "It's called mediating. Now talk."

He left without a backward glance.

…

"Can't you just get these off?" Felicity shook her left arm, making the links in the cuffs rattle. She fully expected him to get them out of the mess that Diggle had left them in without a problem, but so far he was just sitting there, looking as annoyed as she felt.

"With my left hand and without hurting one of us?" he asked insultingly. "No."

Sighing, Felicity leaned back against the wall. There were sitting side-by-side on the floor as that was the only comfortable position they had managed to find. "So then what do we do?"

Oliver grimaced. "I have a meeting at work in," he glanced at his watch, "thirty minutes. And as the newly reinstated CEO, I don't feel like I should miss it."

"Great," Felicity muttered under her breath. "Just great."

...

The drive to Queen Consolidated was uncomfortable in more ways than one. The handcuffs made driving difficult. Oliver, as the driver, had things easier than Felicity did as the passenger, because he just had to keep both hands on the wheel. She, however, had to squish herself as close to the driver's side as she could so that Oliver could have a firm grip with his right hand.

The silence was even worse than the physical discomfort, in Felicity's opinion. Normally, when she was this close to Oliver in a confined space, she couldn't help but breath in his scent and imagine his arms around her and his lips on hers. This time was different, though. Instead of sexual tension there was just plain tension, dampening both their moods and making normal conversation impossible.

A sharp corner sent Felicity flying into Oliver's shoulder, making her gasp more in surprise than in pain.

"You okay?" he asked immediately, shooting her a concerned glance as she righted herself.

"I'm fine."

And that was all their conversation for the whole trip.  
…

"A brighter future, for both Starling and Queen Consolidated."

Felicity rolled her eyes at the forced enthusiasm in Oliver's tone. As far as she could tell, his only real job was to pretend that he knew what he was doing, approve other people's decisions, and give cheesy pep talks.

An idea wormed its way into Felicity's brain. An idea that would irritate Oliver, but would finally get her point across. And besides, there was nothing he could do to her in front of all the people present.

Holding up their linked hands suddenly, Felicity jumped in. "And one way we, Queen Consolidated, intend to build this brighter future is by improving cooperation and communication among employees."

Oliver stared at her, slack-jawed and with a glint of annoyance clear in his eyes. He saw what she was doing, and he didn't like it. But she didn't care. Ever since the Goblin incident and their subsequent kiss on the training mat, things between them had been weird. He had started backing off emotionally and treating her like she was made of glass. Every time Felicity had tried to confront her about it, he had pushed her away or changed the subject. Finally, she had snapped and constant tension had erupted between them. Now, she finally had the chance to figure out why.

"Mr. Queen and I," she continued, "are demonstrating how difficult cooperation can sometimes be. However, good communication can ease these difficulties and pave the way towards a better tomorrow." She shot him a meaningful glance, hoping he would catch her hint and realize that she wanted them to talk about their issues.

He glared at her, but there was nothing he could do now. "Thank you, Miss Smoak, for explaining our little exercise." Raising his voice, he addressed the room at large, "But I believe that the results are still inconclusive. Sometimes, excess communication and cooperation can be dangerous in certain situations." Seeing blank looks greeting that statement, he amended it quickly. "I mean, it can dangerously impede creativity and innovation among our staff."

Before Felicity could jump in with another pointed statement, he changed the subject. "Moving on…"

…

"It's about the Goblin, isn't it." It was more of a statement than a question, but Felicity still wanted confirmation. They were back at the lair and it was getting late, so she judged that one last attempt to break the icy silence and talk to Oliver was worth a try.

He sighed, but he finally responded. "Yeah."

"Okayyy," she dragged the word out. "So what's the big problem?"

"You almost died."

Slowly, Felicity slipped her hand into his. "I know the dangers of being a part of this life, Oliver. It's my choice to make, and I made it."

"You don't understand, Felicity," he growled. "I care about you, and you almost died. It's what happens to everyone I care about."

Suddenly, Felicity understood. Her near-death experience coupled with their passionate kiss just reminded Oliver of all that he had lost. All the people who he thought had died just because he loved them.

"Babysitting me isn't going to change anything," she whispered softly. "I make my own choices." His shoulder was tense as she leaned her head on it, but she felt the muscles slowly start to relax under her touch.

"I know," he mumbled unhappily.

"So you're going to start acting normally again?"

"Do I have another choice?"

She chuckled. "No."

His head tilted to lean against hers on his shoulder. "Fine."

And Felicity knew that they would be fine.

…

Diggle crept into the lair early the next morning, preparing himself for the outrage and yelling to come from his angry friends. What he saw instead came as a pleasant surprise.

The spare double cot was set up next to the salmon ladder. On it was Oliver, his back to Diggle, arms holding Felicity close to his chest. Both were asleep. Judging by the wrinkled state of their clothing, they had obviously been there all night and hadn't bothered to go home and chance. However, he assumed that they had worked out their difficulties.

Quietly, he walked over to them and placed the key to the cuffs in Felicity's slightly open hand.

They would thank him later.

* * *

_Please review! Did it feel too choppy?_


	13. Chapter 13

_A/N: This chapter was prompted by __**SuzzieSidle**__ - the request was a bit open-ended, so I hope you liked where I went with it!_

_As always, more ideas/requests/prompts are always encouraged and appreciated. I'll keep writing this fic as long as I have requests =)._

_Enjoy!_

* * *

A newspaper slammed down on the desk in front of Oliver. "You seen this?" Diggle demanded, putting his hands on his hips and looming impressively.

Oliver leaned back in his chair and massaged his temples. "No. But if it's what I think it is, I'm pretty sure I don't want to."

Diggle looked exasperated. "It's not something you can just ignore and it'll go away. You compromised the mission."

"I know, I know," Oliver broke in. "But I can fix it."

"You'd better, or else you and Felicity will become targets."

That made Oliver pause. He knew that his actions would have consequences, but he hadn't considered that Felicity might be put in danger because of him. Making her a target in the criminal world was not an option. Not when it was his fault.

"I'll fix it," Oliver said again. "I'll go back tonight as the Arrow and make my presence known."

Diggle just shook his head. "Okay. But what happened?"

"A lot."

* * *

**...12 hours earlier…**

"Remind me again why you couldn't do this as the Arrow?" Felicity yelled into Oliver's ear.

Smiling pleasantly, he took her elbow and led her through the swarm of paparazzi and onto the dance floor of the crowded club. People parted as he approached, probably just from his sheer size - he knew that he was considered intimidating.

When they had reached the edge of the dance floor as far away from the speakers as he could manage, he stopped and looked her in the eyes. "It's not too late to back out."

"No," she shook her head. "I want to do this. But seriously, why are you here as Oliver Queen and not as the Arrow?"

"The security on the club at night makes it impossible to get in without alerting someone or triggering some alarm," he explained over the pounding bass-line. "I could get in and get out, but I wouldn't have time to search the storeroom for what we need before the police arrived. I'd rather not hurt them if I didn't have to."

"Good plan." Taking a calming breath, Felicity smiled at him. "Let's do this. But I won't have to act or anything, will I? Because we both know that I'm not really that good under pressure and I don't want to panic and ruin the mission or anything."

Oliver put a comforting arm around her shoulder. "No acting. You do what you do best - hack."

She leaned into him for a second before he moved his arm and took her hand instead. "The storeroom is this way," he pointed to the back corner of the club. Her fingers tightened around his and he gently tugged her along behind him.

This mission was going to be simple. No need for the Arrow, even. All they had to do was get into the storeroom and find evidence that the club was dealing drugs to a group of 'special' customers. Felicity had already pulled up the club's plans and they had decided that the storeroom was the only logical place for the club owners to hide large amounts of the illegal substance. Besides, if they were wrong, they could always come back again. That was the beauty of their plan. With Oliver's reputation as a clubber, it wouldn't look suspicious for him to show up a couple times until he and Felicity were able to locate their proof.

Reaching the back edge of the club, Oliver pointed towards a large door hidden around the corner. "The storeroom's down there," he told Felicity as he reached into his jacket and pulled out a small black box. She had insisted that she needed it to hack the keypad on the door. "We don't have to worry about security as long as we're fast - the next round won't be by for 15 minutes."

It took Felicity under two minutes to get the door open. Oliver found it amazing what she could do with her technology skills, and once again, he thanked his lucky stars that she was on his side.

"What're we looking for?" she asked once they were both inside and the door was closed. The lights in the room were dim, but Oliver could see well enough. He noticed with relief that the club music was muted and he could finally hear himself think.

"Not sure exactly. Try tapping the floors and walls to see if anything is hollow, I'll check the shelves to see if they're hiding their stash in plain sight."

They split up and worked in quietly for a while; Felicity's tapping the only sound in the small room. Oliver scoured the shelves, but saw no sign of anything illicit. He was just about to conclude that they had been wrong and the drugs weren't there when he heard Felicity call his name.

"Uhh, Oliver? I think I found something."

Rushing to her side, Oliver experimentally tapped the wall in front of her, listening to the hollow echo. "Nice job," he shot her an appreciative grin.

"How does it open?"

"Well," he felt around the edges of the paneling, "I bet if I push here and here, it will just…" A piece of the wall swung open in response to the pressure, revealing a small, square hole about the size of a shoebox. In the hole was a stash of drugs and some large bills. "Jackpot."

"So, what now? Because we can't call the police and tell them that we just happened to be in a club's storeroom and accidentally found a secret stash of drugs hidden in the wall. I'm pretty sure breaking and entering is considered a crime."

"That won't be a problem," he reassured her as he closed the panel. "The Arrow will give Detective Lance a call with a tip, and the police can take it from there. Oliver Queen won't be involved."

She parted her lips and was about to reply when they both heard the unmistakable sound of voices outside the door. The words were indistinguishable over the music coming from the club, but the storeroom was the only reason for someone to be in this section of the club.

"Oliver?" Felicity asked nervously, looking to him desperately for a plan.

Hiding wasn't an option. The room was small and they would be caught immediately.

An idea came to him, an idea that was risky, but it was the only plan he could think of in the seconds he had before the door opened.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, and pushed her against the wall, flicking off the lights in one smooth motion. Then, he lowered his head and met her lips with his. He kissed her gently at first, but then with more and more urgency as he realized just how much he had been dying to kiss her like this.

She responded just as he had always dreamed that she would. Her hands found their way onto his chest; he could feel the heat of her touch even through his shirt. His left arm snaked around her waist, securing her even more tightly to him as he leaned into the kiss. With his free hand, he found the tie of her ponytail and pulled it out, feeling her soft hair fall over his fingers.

A part of him reminded him that this was all part of the mission and that he should pull back a little so that he could think more clearly, but he ignored it and instead focused on the passionate need flowing through his veins.

The lights sprang to life, but Oliver didn't notice. Not until he heard someone clearing their throat behind him. With great reluctance, he pulled away from, but didn't remove his arm from her waist as he turned around.  
"This is a restricted area. How did you get in here?" one of the two angry men behind him demanded. Oliver recognized their uniforms – they were club employees. "Give me one reason not to call security."

Deliberately slurring his words, Oliver replied, "Sorry, man. Just needed some privacy, you know?"

The man wasn't impressed. His hand went to the radio on his belt. "I asked you how you got in here."

Felicity spoke up, her voice breathy. "IT expert. I can hack anything."

"And we're just leaving. No need for things to get ugly," Oliver added.

Hesitating, the man looked at his silent companion before finally making his decision. "Get outta here," he waved them towards the door. "Before I change my mind."

"Thanks, man," Oliver drawled, pulling Felicity towards the door.

Flashing lights and loud voices assaulted him as he exited the storeroom, blinding him momentarily.

"Mr. Queen, who is that girl with…?"

"Is that your personal assistant?"

"Mr. Queen, can I get a statement on what you were doing…?"

"No comment," Oliver yelled over the sound of the paparazzi's question. He held Felicity even more tightly to his side as he barged through the crowd of reporters, his heart sinking. So much for not getting caught.

"I can see the headline now," he muttered into Felicity's ear as they exited the club, photographers just taking pictures. "Oliver Queen gets personal with his personal assistant."

Teasingly, Felicity commented, "That's not a very catchy headline. If I were you, I'd stick to vigilante-ism."

Oliver was grateful that she was taking this so well. She knew the consequences of publicity as well as he did, and they weren't fun. Rumours about them had already been going around; this was just going to make matters worse.

* * *

"Morning," Felicity greeted them, walking in just as Oliver was finishing his story, a cup of coffee in her hand. "How bad is it?"

Oliver winced. "Don't know yet." Gesturing to the untouched newspaper in front of him, he added, "I haven't been able to bring myself to look yet."

Felicity walked past him and picked of the paper. Oliver caught a glimpse of the picture on the front page - it featured him holding Felicity possessively at his side, desire still vivid in his eyes. There were traces of her fuchsia lipstick smeared across his lips and her hair was mussed, clear indications of what they had been up to in the small room. He groaned and closed his eyes. "Well?"

"Oliver Queen, CEO of Queen Consolidated, was caught sneaking off with his personal assistant last night," she read. "The two were enjoying the club scene when they decided to…" she trailed off. "Yeah, it's bad. And those guys that caught us? They interviewed them as well."

"Great."

"How could you guys let this happen?" Diggle demanded. "How can we give the police an anonymous tip if the entire city knows that you were both in that storage room earlier today? That'll arouse suspicions."

"I told you already that I'll go back tonight and break in as the Arrow, take pictures, and confiscate their stash. Then I'll call Detective Lance in to arrest them."

"Suit yourself," Diggle shook his head. "Just be more careful next time, okay?"

Felicity made a face, still reading the paper. "This article is ridiculous. Half this stuff is made up."

"Publicity thrives on stretching the facts." Oliver's tone was slightly bitter.

"There's one bright point to all of this, though," Felicity added with a twinkle in her eye.

"What?"

"Maybe you do have a career in tabloid journalism after all." She tossed the newspaper at him and walked over to her desk.

He picked it up gingerly, scared to see the article for himself. The headline read, "Queen Consolidated CEO's secret love affair made public."

Oliver surprised himself - he laughed. Somehow, Felicity had an ability to make even the worst situations better. Besides, he certainly didn't regret that kiss.

With a sigh, he dropped the paper and started thinking about how he was going to break back into the club as the Arrow.

However, he couldn't shake the thought of their passionate kiss, of the softness of her lips as she kissed him back.

It was going to be a long day.

* * *

_Please review!_


	14. Chapter 14

_A/N: This chapter was inspired by __**StoryLover6998**__ - I hope you like how it turned out =). As always, I love hearing your thoughts and ideas, so please review!_

_This chapter does briefly reference the events of last chapter, just fyi._

_Enjoy =)._

* * *

He didn't know what he had done, but he knew that it must have been bad. Really bad.

After the recent publicity nightmare uncovering his supposed secret love affair with Felicity, he had decided that it was pointless to continue ignoring the attraction between them, and so they had become a couple.

Everything had been going so well. Actually, maybe 'perfectly' had been a better word to describe their relationship.

Then something, something that Oliver couldn't identify, had changed. Felicity had become a lot more closed off and distant. She still went through the motions of being his girlfriend, but the passion between them had inexplicably vanished.

Perhaps the strangest part of all of this was that every time he tried to bring the subject up, she would suddenly find pressing Arrow business that required her full attention. Or it would be some other flimsy excuse to escape his company. That behaviour was so unlike the usual, bubbly Felicity he knew that it worried him a little. Was there something wrong that he was missing?

"Why the long face, Ollie?"

Oliver looked up and met Thea's eyes. She was standing in the doorway to his room, holding a glass of orange juice and still her pajama pants. She yawned and strolled casually into his room, then sat next to him on his bed. He scooted over slightly so that she had more room to perch.

"Not trying to intrude or anything, but you just looked so depressed. What's wrong?" She stared at him expectantly.

Hesitating, Oliver struggled with the best way to explain his situation without sounding like he couldn't communicate with his own girlfriend. But having a woman's perspective in this case could be invaluable. "It's Felicity," he finally admitted.

"Girl trouble," Thea nodded understandingly, taking a sip of her juice. "Go on."

Oliver spread his hands helplessly. "I'm not even sure how to explain, Speedy," he admitted. "Everything was great, and then all of a sudden, it wasn't. She pulled away from me and I can't figure out why."

"Hmm," Thea's eyes unfocused as she thought. "And she won't talk to you?"

Oliver shook his head. "She leaves every time I try to bring it up."

"Have you tried showing her how you feel?" she asked casually. "I mean, you guys kinda started dating without really dating, if you know what I mean."

Her statement made Oliver pause. It was true that their relationship had gone from zero to sixty in the space of a couple days, but it had never occurred to him that she might have been bothered by that. "And that's a problem?" he asked, honestly confused.

'Oh, Ollie," Thea patted his shoulder fondly. "Woman like to be wooed. Courted. Romanced. Try some of that, okay?" she smiled. "Anyway, I have to get ready - I'm meeting Roy soon for brunch."

"Okay," Oliver responded vacantly, deep in thought. "And Speedy?" she turned around on her way out to face him. "Thanks for the advice."

...

Felicity exited the small dress shop, a pink bag on her arm. She didn't even notice him. From his position leaning against the wall behind her, Oliver watched her pause and lift her face towards the sky, soaking up the morning sunshine. It was a beautiful sight. Her blonde hair gleamed, adding another dimension of colour to the simple ponytail she always wore. She looked more relaxed than he could remember seeing her lately - there was no mission, no danger, just pure enjoyment of nature.

Before he was done soaking in her beauty, she started off down the street, her low heels making clicking sounds against the cobblestone sidewalk.

_This is it._ Oliver pushed off from the wall and started after her with long strides, quickly catching up to her more leisurely pace.

"Felicity," he greeted her warmly while slipping his hand into hers. "What a coincidence, running into you here."

She didn't let go of his hand, but she did shoot him a look that clearly conveyed her disbelief that this meeting was an accident. "Oliver," she imbued her voice with false enthusiasm. "Great to see you." The tension was back - he could see it in the way she held herself. It hurt to know that he was the one who had put it there. But, that was quickly going to chance. He hoped.

"So, do you have any plans for today?" he asked, trying not to show her how desperately he needed her to say that she was free.

Hesitatingly, she replied, "No, I guess I'm free. Why?"

Oliver grinned in boyish excitement. "Because I'm taking you on a proper date."

"Uh," she stared at him like he had lost his mind. "You're what?"

Chuckling, Oliver tugged at her fingers, leading her towards their first stop. "You'll see," he promised.

...

"Favourite flower?"

She thought for a moment, biting her lip absentmindedly. "Hmm. It's clichéd, but I really like roses."

Grinning at the sight of her lost in thought, Oliver almost didn't hear her response.

The day was turning out even more perfectly than he could have imagined. They had gone out for lunch at a little Chinese restaurant and had ordered just a couple dishes to share. He couldn't imagine that eating with chopsticks could be sexy, but somehow, she had managed to make it so that his blood heated up with every bite she took. Aside from the sexual tension charging each moment, they had had some great conversation for the first time in a long time.

Now, they were walking along, still hand in hand, on their way to a little flower stand Oliver had seen earlier.

"Roses," he finally repeated absentmindedly. "Those are good." He smacked himself mentally for his dumb response. _Pay attention Oliver,_ he ordered himself.

Luckily, they turned the corner and the stand was right there, saving him from having to fix his reply.

"Oliver?" she breathed. "Are you buying me flowers? Because no one has ever bought me flowers before and I think it is so romantic and a little cheesy. But in the best way," she hastened to add.

"Stay right there and close your eyes," he told her, stopping her rambling. Gently, he ran the pad of his thumb over her cheek, the touch sending tingles down his arm. He heard her breathing speed up to match his already elevated breathing. Finally her eyes fluttered closed and her lips parted slightly.

Oliver nearly groaned at the sight. His big plan involved a passionate kiss at the end of their day, but his self-control told him that there was no way he was going to make it that long without kissing her. Cupping her cheek, he pulled her towards him and covered her lips with his in a feather-light touch. She exhaled, the feeling of her hot breath against his mouth nearly undermining what little self-control he had left. By some superhuman force of will, he pulled away.

"Wow," she breathed, her eyes wide and pupils dilated.

"That's just an appetizer," he promised, his voice deeper than usual. "Now, keep your eyes closed and try not to tempt me any further?" He didn't realize he had said that last past aloud until she laughed, a throaty chuckle that nearly made him forget his master plan altogether. He noticed that the tension in her frame was gone.

Gathering his shreds of self-control, Oliver took a deep breath and turned to the elderly woman minding the stand, who was grinning widely at him. "A bouquet of roses, please. Fuschia, if you have them." He didn't meet the woman's eyes.

"Oh, the joys of young love," she enthused, gathering the flowers he had requested into a plastic sleeve to protect them. He took the flowers and paid her, ignoring her suggestive wink.

Returning to Felicity, he whispered in her ear, "Open your eyes."

Slowly, she blinked them open and stared right into the bouquet. Oliver noticed with a mixture of amusement and desire that the roses were the exact colour of her lips. She leaned in and inhaled the scent, her eyes half-closing in pleasure. "They're beautiful. Thank you."

The way she looked at him, with love and need in her eyes, made him glad that he had taken Thea's advice to try being a little romantic.

"Not nearly as beautiful as you are." He was glad that his cheesy comment made her blush instead of laugh. "And I give up." That last comment was directed at himself, not at her, but she looked confused. He didn't clarify - it was too long a story to explain how he couldn't stick to his plan and he had to kiss her right now, while her cheeks were heated and the memory of their last kiss was fresh on his lips.

He wrapped his arms around her, careful to keep the flowers safe behind her back. Heedless of anyone watching, he crushed his lips to hers, breathing in her scent and reveling in her softness. She moaned against him, and he immediately deepened the kiss, reacting to her wordless request.

From that moment on, Oliver knew that he and Felicity were going to be fine.

* * *

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